Rogaland: A Bouldering Mecca

I realize when using the superlative to describe a climbing area it is going to elicit some opinions to the contrary.  That said, Rogaland might be a candidate for the best bouldering area in the world.  I've been to many of the world's most renowned bouldering locations (Rocklands being the most glaring exception) and Rogaland holds it's own or surpasses the other heavy hitters.  Yes, it is just my opinion and I tend to prefer granite over other rock types but I consider myself to be discerning and well informed.  It is indeed subjective but even if Rogaland isn't number 1 on your list there is no denying it as a world-class destination.

Here's a couple things to consider regarding Rogaland......

Quantity:  Having an endless supply of rock is perhaps the easiest of Rogaland's qualities to point out.  There is so much rock that it is almost a bad thing (if that is possible) as you become desensitized to house-sized blocks as you drive past hundreds if not thousands of them.  Needless to say the potential is staggering.

Quality:  Fortunately all that rock is not wasted as the choss factor is low and the vast majority of rock is high quality granite.  As tends to be the case with granite some areas can be "sharp" but others have the feel of sandstone.  The rock is extremely climbable and makes for amazing lines (why I love granite) and steep climbing without being overly featured.

Setting:  Rogaland's breathtakingly beauty is the reason tourists flock from around the world and since the entire region is chalk full of boulders you can look forward to climbing in some of the most amazing settings ever.

Access:  Many areas are roadside or with short approaches and Norway has a solid infrastructure of roads spider-webbing through the rugged landscape.  Finding and developing new areas is pretty much effortless.  There are currently few access problems but some areas are more sensitive than others.  While Norway's "every man's right" guarantees a degree of access to all land users it is important to remember that many boulders are on private property and climbers should be respectful.  It only takes a couple douchebags to ruin it for everyone.


And now for the bad news.....

Expensive:  Norway is not cheap.  In fact, it is the most expensive country in the world.  A dirtbag can still get by with selective grocery shopping and camping (there is no shortage of beautiful places to camp) but if you are looking to eat out or have a roof over your head you best bring a fat wallet.

Weather:  Rogaland is not known for it's dry climate.  If you want the "sick temps bro" that come in the spring and fall it will be a gamble to book a trip as it could get rained out. The summers are drier and the long days provide more than enough time to climb but certain areas can be a bit buggy.

More specific info on Rogaland coming in the near future.  In the meantime here are a couple pictures

Kalle on the amazing Little Joy.  A roadside boulder with a 3-star problem

Another roadside gem, Sorgfri.

Kalle sampling the perfect stone of Tirpitz.

A random photo taken from the car.  It pretty much looks like this everywhere, except there are often more boulders.

It takes less than 10 minutes to hike to those boulders but in Rogaland that is considered a small boulder field and a long approach. 

Collaboration, Instagram, and a couple Pictures

The blog has been going along at a snails pace recently and I apologize for that.  At some point I'd like to make some serious upgrades to Kearney Journey but the time required to do so deters my feeble efforts.  That being said there are a couple recent developments for those with a voracious appetite for climbing media.

Firstly, I've joined forces with my friends at Climbingpics.  If you haven't seen the blog it is pretty much what the name suggests as we post a new picture Monday to Friday.  Anyways, I'll be posting pictures there from time to time so if you can't get through the day without your dose of climbing porn you should check it out.

Secondly, I've just signed up for Instagram.  I figured I've got a smart phone so why not pepper folks with pictures from my adventures.  Those of you that are interested in new development will probably like this as I realized most of the pictures on my phone are new areas/problems.  I'll posting the pictures to my Facebook page for those of you without Instagram that want to follow.

And a report from Norway is a bit overdue but it is coming.  In the meantime here are a couple pictures of some problems from Sweden's best coast.

Pyssel on the the FA of Rainbow Rocket 2.  It's surprisingly difficult to coordinate the double-step dyno.

Henrik trying Executive Privilege, a problem I put up a couple years ago.

Sefan on the amazing Hippopotamus with trad-climbers spectating.  

Heading to the Mecca of Rogaland

I've got 5 days and a favorable forecast to visit what I consider to be among the best bouldering regions I've ever seen.  It still amazes me that Rogaland is not on the radar of most climbers but I'll see if I can help turn that around.

Just one of many amazing boulder fields in Rogaland.  A picture from my first trip to Rogaland in 2006.

Slaying a Giant: Abiyoyo Goes Down

Last year I posted about a giant boulder up in Bohuslan and I made several mentions of an amazing arete on said boulder.  I still remember the sheer joy I felt when first laying eyes on the arete as lines like that one are the reason I spend countless hours scouring maps, driving back-roads and bushwhacking through brush.  It is a king line on an impressive boulder and it just "needed" to be climbed.  Unfortunately on the first day of cleaning/trying we were so totally shutdown that the arete became "a problem for the future" that I put on the back-burner, hoping one day my skills would suffice.  It took about 5 years before I paid another visit to the giant boulder where I was greeted by wet rock but I was reminded of how great this problem looked and the arete got bumped up to the top of my list.  So after returning to Sweden this yearI figured it was time to start going down that list.

At first the arete felt every bit as impossible as it did that first day but slowly things started coming together.  In the end it only took one long session of work to unlock the sequence and a return trip with fresh skin and muscles to send.  This problem had been stewing for years and seeing as how the boulder itself is gargantuan I figured I'd name the arete after the giant Abiyoyo.  Abiyoyo is from South African folklore and made famous(ish) by Pete Seeger.  This is up among the best FAs I've ever done.

Here are a couple pictures. 

Thanks to a smaller adjacent boulder we start the arete at an obvious "jug" in about the middle and the problem avoids being airy.  The low start definitely goes and almost doubles the climbing and will add a good amount to difficult.  The landing might look a little sketchy but the risk of falling to into our makeshift landing is minimal.

Gearing up for the red-point crux.  The climbing is the perfect mix of strength and technique and there is no place to take a breath until the lip.

Hold a swing then just a few more "easy" moves before the 6 meters of victory climbing to the tiptop of the giant boulder.

Little Rock City Video

Another little video from my time in the States.  This one has a bunch of classic in Little Rock City (aka Stone Fort).  Hope you enjoy.



Little Rock City Bouldering from Walker Kearney on Vimeo.

Little Cottonwood Canyon Video

Here's a little video from a snowy session in LCC a few months ago.


Three Problems at the Secret Garden: Little Cottonwood Canyon, UT from Walker Kearney on Vimeo.

Sunshine in Sweden

So I've been back in Sweden for a month and a half now and until last week there wasn't much of a chance to get out.  Fortunately it looks like Spring decided to show up and along with flowers and rapidly growing daylight we're also getting some dry days and I'm trying to take full advantage.  The Swedes that have had the misfortune of spending the entire winter here are chomping at the bit as most of my friends have only touched real rock a handful of times since November.  Yes, Swedish winters suck.

On Sunday we took a short excursion to Bohuslän to brush some new stuff and revisit some old favorites.  Our first stop was a wall I'd stumbled upon previously and apparently it had been seen by several other climbers but no one had bothered to get on it.  It seems about time so we spent a couple hours of mostly getting our butts kicked and eventually we managed two sweet new problems.  After the flogging we mad a quick stop by Ramsviksland to show the gang Hamster Huey and the Gooey Kablooie and brush some new stuff.  Here are some pictures from the Day.

Kim on the first problem we established.  This clean line was definitely harder than I thought it would be and took some time before Oskar nabbed the FA.  Pyssel would also send and the rest of us came up empty handed.

Oskar shows how to use a mono-fingerlock

Pyssel set up for the crux deadpoint.  Definitely harder than it looks 

Narrowly latching the last hold

The other problem we did required a delicate heel-hook and stained climbing.  This one was also harder than it looks but I somehow managed to scrape my way up it and Pyssel and Oskar both got painfully close (I'll actually sign Oskar's scorecard if he want)

Here is Kim on a cool sloper problem in Ramsviksland.  She ended up falling after grabbing the finishing "jug" due to slimy rock

We put up a couple new problems in Ramsviksland with Stefan's tricky and painful face-climb being the best of the new problems.  Many the the other projects I'd hoped to try in Ramsviksland were wet.  So it goes